


The Aftermath

by SentinelCipher



Series: Formal Affairs [2]
Category: Arthur Maxson - Fandom, Brotherhood of Steel - Fandom, Fallout 4
Genre: Ad Victoriam, Brotherhood of Steel - Freeform, F/M, arthur maxson - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-03
Updated: 2018-01-16
Packaged: 2018-09-06 03:26:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 19,144
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8732950
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SentinelCipher/pseuds/SentinelCipher
Summary: The Sequel to Formal Affairs!





	1. Cracks in the Covenant

**Author's Note:**

> To get the full extent of what's going on, I do suggest reading the first part (Formal Affairs) because otherwise some things won't make much sense!

Maxson was the first to wake up, as usual. He looked over at Sole, remembering what that felt like when he was sitting next to her after her surgery, hoping that someday she would open her eyes again. Although Jonathan had mentioned that Sole had a recovered from the trauma remarkably fast, both physically and mentally, the events of that day stilled ripped him up to some extent. He couldn’t get the image of her crashing down right in front of him out of his head. He had never felt more powerless than in that moment, a feeling most foreign to him ever since Sentinel Lyons died. He slipped out of the bed, careful not to awaken her.

Even as he was putting on his clothes, he couldn’t shake the haunting feeling that putting up yet another show was far from ideal. He couldn’t come up with reasons why it would end in mayhem but he knew it would. He would be deceiving his own men in stead of some officials this time… all merely to lower the chances of her getting caught in the crossfire. He shot another glance at her before he opened the door.

She murmured a little before her eyes fluttered open. The sound of the door creeping open had woke her up. She’d been lucky that she was a relatively light sleeper when out in the Commonwealth, but now it meant catching Maxson red-handed, she was even more grateful for it than that one time it made sure she could shoot a raider just turning around the corner.  
“ Hey baby, where do you think you’re going?” Maxson didn’t even grant her an answer and pretended like she never said anything. Sole chuckled. “ Is this because I called you baby or are you actually practicing being broody, Maxson? Cause you actually practicing that on the regular would explain why you’re so good at it.”   
She sat up straight and pulled the sheets up a little. “Well?” 

He shook his head with a smile on his face as he closed the door in between his office and the bedroom again.   
“ Sole, we need to agree on how we will set up this… disagreement between us..”  
Sole nodded. “ Yeah, that’s not happening if you’re doing the walk of shame… which I by the way do not take as a compliment.”

Maxson turned away from her as she got out of the bed and put on some underwear. She just laughed at him.  
“ Oh you’ve gotta be kidding me. Maxson, no need to hide your blushing eyes anymore. You’ve done worse, or let’s call it better, than seeing me naked by now.” She hugged him from behind while still in lingerie and slithered to his front. He just turned around, forcing her to let go, and tried to open the door again. She got in front of the door and slammed it closed with her back against it. “Seriously? You weren’t that shy last night. What’s going on?”   
Maxson swallowed. “ Sole, we’ll be pretending that we can’t stand each other. We need to find some way of remaining neutral. You’re… shifting my focus.”   
Sole shook her head. “Ah, I see. So you do want to practice… just like old times, huh? Except I don’t enjoy pretending that I can’t stand you again over pretending to be dating you.” She winked at him before putting her hair up and finding some clothes. She heard his voice, as towering as his physical presence, asking   
“Can’t stand me again?” 

Sole smiled. It felt damn good to know she could still push his buttons so easily. 

“ ‘C mon honey, you have to admit that you can be a bit on edge sometimes.”  
“ Is this you testing out nicknames?”  
“ Avoiding the ‘on edge’ comment are we? Well, self-knowledge is the start of all wisdom.” He didn’t respond so she decided to let that one go.   
Sole shrugged. “Perhaps… liking any of ‘em so far Max? Sugar? Sweetcheeks? ” Maxson shook his head and brought his hand to his forehead in annoyance, but she had noticed that hint of a smile clearly on his lips. “I see. Fine, I’ll stick to Maxson for now. “  
“ You can call me whatever you want.” Sole laughed and pointed her finger at him warningly. “Oh, you’re gonna regret saying that… you do know that right?” He walked up to her. Really, really close.  
“ As long as you do it when we’re alone.” Sole pouted. “But that’s no fun.”   
“ Neither is a perceived liability running around referring to me by any and every cute nickname that comes up in her head.”  
“ I don’t like you referring to me as a liability.”   
“ Perceived liability. Besides, you do cloud my sense of judgement.” She clenched her jaw and zipped her top up higher when he got closer. He wanted snide comments? He’d get ‘em.

She nodded. “Uh-huh by giving you a moral compass for people who aren’t part of your little Prydwen Club here?”   
Maxson walked up to her and said “ Such as the occasional synth? “ He noticed the firey look flash in her eyes again, instantly deciding to kiss her… until she pushed him back.   
“ If you’re trying to practice getting on my bad side again, you’re doing a fantastic job.”  
“ Sole…”  
“ No. See, this whole pretend game is getting dangerous. We both know what happened last time we pretended to be something we were not. You ought to be careful to make sure history doesn’t repeat itself. “ She put on her combat boots and got ready to head out.

“ Where are you going?”   
“ I’ve got to vent. Don’t worry… it will sell your new story just swell. ” She attempted to bow dramatically but the wound prevented her from seeing it through entirely. She grimaced and put up her hand as he rushed towards her, worried. “ Don’t.”  
“ You’re not in a condition to be heading out yet. ”   
“ I’m fine. And you might be my … I don’t even know what to call you right now but I did not turn into some damsel in distress due to a bullet wound. I’ve had to deal with worse pain than this. So did you. I’m fine. ”  
“ I order you to stay. “  
“ About the whole ordering me around thing… I’m not sure if I feel as strongly about it as you do.”

Maxson knew he would be doing more harm than good if he didn’t let her walk out the door than if he did. He tried to get back to the ridiculous piles of paperwork only to notice that his focus was off. He had to read each sentence twice before he even had a notion of what it said. His mind kept drifting off to whether or not Sole had been playing a part in acting angry. But he realised that he had shed a light on their difference in lifestyle, in spite of their common cause.

Sole inhaled deeply after closing the door. She straightened her body up and headed to Haylen. Slowly. She would have preferred to stomp off but presumed the pain whenever she put her foot down too harshly served as a reminder of the fact that she was not invincible. Heads turned as she walked past, some looking at her curiously and some just getting out of the way. She hated that they noticed the clenched teeth, the lack of shoulders pushed back. At least they all noticed in her mind. She was quite relieved when she found Haylen.   
“ Missed me? ”   
“ What? Oh, Sole. Are you sure you should be… up considering what happened?” Sole waved a hand at her.   
“ Sure, I’m all stitched up.”   
Haylen shrugged. “ I suppose you know what you’re getting yourself into.”  
Sole leaned against one of the metal beams behind her before muttering “I’m not so sure about that.”  
“ Tough date with Maxson?” Sole’s pupils darted up again, towards Haylen.   
“ You could say that.”  
“ I’m rather curious what got you shot. And what got you to move in with Maxson.” Haylen smiled.  
“ Not voluntarily.” Haylen put back the mechanical device she seemed to be tinkering with and leaned back in her chair. “Care to explain?”   
“ Sure, but not here. Too many people listening in.” Sole turned around and slitted her eyes at some people who seemed to have stopped dead in their tracks the moment she had started to speak. They resumed whatever they were doing right after that one glance. That’s when she heard familiar footsteps.  
Maxson’s.

 

“ What the hell do you think you’re doing following me around, Elder?” She didn’t even have to turn around to know how he was standing there. Brooding, high-and-mighty posture. Haylen was clearly uncomfortable with the entire situation. Sole wished she could just get her to get over her rank and tell him off every once in a while too, even if just for wanting to interrupt their conversation. But that’s not how an army worked. She knew that. Maxson’s voice rose over her thoughts.  
“ You need to recover from your wounds before you roam around this ship, Sentinel.” She rolled her eyes at Haylen before turning around. He kept his distance.   
“ I’ll decide when I’m ready to escape your ‘protection’. “   
“ Sentinel.”  
” You ought to have considered the possibility of me wanting to get out of the confines of that room before you started questioning my loyalties. “  
” I suggest you join me to my office so we can discuss whatever issues you may be having…”   
“ Sure. Beause I’m the one with issues?”   
With a nod of her head Sole told Haylen to move towards her and get out of there. Haylen visibly doubted whose orders to take. “ ‘C mon Haylen. He won’t retaliate to you, as this is my decision.”   
Haylen looked at Maxson apologetically before joining Sole. He didn’t even notice her, eyes set on Sole.   
“ Sentinel. Final warning. ”  
She, in turn, just shot a warning look his way while hissing “ Look, I know you’re my superiour and I’ll take whatever sanction you decide on later. But for now, you don’t have a damn say in where I do or don’t go. “

He resisted the urge to grab her by the wrist or say something that would force her to stay in place somehow. Instead he let her walk past him.  
As she left and he turned around people seemed in awe at the stunt Sole pulled there. He looked at a group who seemed too amazed to continue their work and ordered them to get back to work unless they wanted to expect getting a sanction as a result of their behaviour as well. 

As soon as Sole and Haylen reached Haylen’s quarters she carefully took a seat.   
“ You sure don’t look ok.”  
“ Thanks for the insult on my looks. Is this is how you greet your friend returned from the dead?” Sole said with a smile on her face. It was nice to talk to Haylen again without Maxson watching over her shoulder.   
“ You died?” Sole shook her head. “Nah, I didn’t. I mean, it was a close call but you can’t get rid of the bane of so many people’s existence that easilyl.”   
“ That’s a bit of an overstatement.”   
“ Barely. I’m pretty sure our beloved Elder is seething with rage by now. ”  
“ What’s going on between you and Maxson?” Sole opened her mouth and closed it.   
“ Sole, I’ve never seen you go against him in such a direct manner before. He’s still our Elder. So unless you’re in a relationship with him…”   
“ I’ll just give you a short version of what happened. So, I decided to join Maxson as his Sentinel only to find out there was some sort of rumour going around about us dating. In and of itself I didn’t care much about that but some seemed to be convinced that we had been in a relationship before I was appointed Sentinel…”  
“ And that that’s why he named you Sentinel in the first place.”  
“ Indeed. For that reason alone.” Haylen huffed. “They clearly haven’t seen you in the field yet.”  
“ THANK YOU! Exactly my point. But… anyway. He took me to a meeting in which he had to present me as a Sentinel because I am now allowed to have an opinion in some boards as it turns out. It didn’t go well. I managed to turn them to my side but… some wanted to show me their appreciation regardless… which is the reason why I came back with this little souvenir.” She lifted her shirt and showed the compress.   
Haylen nodded slowly. “ I still haven’t heard what caused this rift between you and Maxson. You seem more hostile than usual towards him. Did something happen? Did he try to hurt you somehow?” Sole rubbed her palm, flashes of him squeezing her hand returned to her mind’s eye.   
“ No. He saved my life. If he hadn’t acted as fast as he had, I’d have gotten a couple more bullets drilled into my body. “ Haylen’s eyes widened. 

“I didn’t see him as that… heroic. To rush to you when there are bullets flying around. He doesn’t even go out in the field.”  
“ It’s just because he’s the heir to the throne. Not because he wasn’t trained.” She realised she was defending him.  
“ Look, something is clearly going on between you two and you’re not telling me. “ Haylen said.  
“ Fine, we faked having a relationship. Just, in front of people though. A very non-physical one.” That was the very first straight-up lie she told Haylen.   
“ And he tried to make it physical?” Sole shook her head and supressed a smile.   
“No, he just got on my nerves. Questioning some decisions I made in the past. People I chose to support.”  
“ Ah… he brought up Danse did he?”   
Sole nodded. “ Danse, my loyalty to the Minutemen,…who I ought to get back to soon by the way. Ugh, as soon as I am completely healed up again… “   
Haylen looked like she wanted to ask something else. Sole tilted her head a little. “Ok, spit it out, what is it?”

“ I thought something… else might have happened. I saw him rushing you in before. Everyone did. You looked asleep or… well you know. He kept his eyes on you so rigidly I was convinced that he had either caused your death or something else had happened between you two.”  
“ I wasn’t in the clear yet.” Lie two. “ He was probably concerned about losing the legend that defeated the Institute. As you said, bad for morale.” Haylen seemed to buy it.   
Suddenly Rhys showed up. He looked surprised to see Sole.   
“ Surprised I’m still alive too huh?” He regained his composure relatively easily but couldn’t hide that he disliked her sitting there. Ah, a more emotional version of the leader of the Brotherhood of Steel in that regard. Never warmed up to her regardless.   
Sole got up, carefully. “ I’m gonna head back to that bed. It’s part of my new office ya know? “

She inhaled before putting her hand on the doorknob, only to have it opened for her.   
“ I never thought you’d be one for dramatic gestures Elder.” He told the guards to take a couple of hours off before shutting and locked the door behind her.   
“ What’s gonna happen now? Are you going to try to lecture me about how I should know better than to spill my guts to Haylen? Hm?”  
Maxson gritted his teeth for a second. “ I would appreciate you no longer using such idioms.”  
“ Get over it Maxson. I survived it.”  
“ I suggest you inform me what inspired your behaviour of today.” Sole just laughed.

“Wait, you really aren’t aware of what caused that?”


	2. Man Maketh Morals

Maxson looked stoic, showing no response whatsoever. Sole dropped herself in a chair and got an instant reminder of why such a thing was simply no longer a good idea. She instinctively reached for the wound, inhaled and looked up at him again, trying to straighten her face once more.  
“ You must have been taught at some age that actions have consequences right? What you said before… it didn’t miss its effect. So let’s hear it… was that to antagonize me ‘for practice’ or did that have some kind of deeper meaning? “  
“ I apologize if my wording of this morning somehow hurt your feelings.” Sole laughed before looking at him. She knew that he would never look away during an argument, it showed more submission than he was comfortable with after all.  
“ Such wonderful wording there, Elder! It’s unbelievable that even as you are apologizing you still manage to put the blame on me somehow. This isn’t about my ‘delicate’ feelings. This is about you calling me a liability because I see more people as human than you do.” Maxson sighed. He squatted in front of her, opting to make himself look smaller instead of taller for once. 

 

“ I was merely testing what I could say in order to make our story more believable.” Sole leaned forward, ignoring the nagging pain it caused. 

“ Yeah… but part of you meant it. I can tell.“ He clenched his jaw, confirming her assumptions.  
” Sole…”  
“ No. You don’t get to make an attempt to soothe me. First of all; there’s no need to act hostile towards one another as long as there is nobody to witness it. Second of all; we do still have a difference in moral values.” As she leaned back again she continued with “I was hoping that you would eventually have a more open mind with the Institute no longer existing. Guess that that was a mistake. And ultimately such a rigid mindset could do way worse than break us up. Don’t forget that we are both leaders. Neither of us is accustomed to disregarding our principles easily.”

Maxson sighed. “ However I do see your point, I propose we work out those issues at a later time. Unfortunately, letters have arrived of various officials. Every single person who was presented when I presented you to the high-ranking members of the Brotherhood , everyone who knows you are still alive is breathing down my neck because the attacks on my Sentinel imply discord within our ranks. They advised me to lower you in rank, temporarily. Until the dust settles.” Sole nodded.

“ Well, you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do I suppose.” She purposefully averted her gaze. She couldn’t manage to figure out to which extent it would get to her, but remembering to which extent she could advise Maxson and have a say in tactical matters before the shooting the consequences to the Brotherhood concerned her.  
“ I don’t even consider taking their advice in this matter.” He hissed angrily. This somehow managed to remind her of why she fell for him in the first place, the remnants of a rebel heart. He seemed insulted at the mere suggestion that he would follow their orders regarding her. Sole tried to supress a smug grin but knew a hint of a smile was visible. “ However I may not appreciate the impulsiveness in some of your actions, you are the greatest asset the Brotherhood has had in a very long time, Sentinel. You have defeated our most dangerous enemy, stopping a war we realistically were not likely to win otherwise.”

Maxson got up again and stretched out his hand towards her. “ This is no time to be arguing policy.”  
She just looked at it. “ We haven’t said the last word about the synths yet Maxson.” He didn’t respond to it as she took his hand and allowed him to pull her up. She pulled her hand back as soon as she was back on both feet, saying “But fine, I suppose we can keep that under wraps until the… ‘dust settles’.” 

“ We need to discuss another matter.” He said, immediately sparking another surge of annoyance. She sighed and leaned against the nearest wall with her arms crossed in front of her. She knew exactly what this was going to be about, but refused to say it herself. She did not want to run the risk of any sort of implying that she thought she had done something wrong in the process.  
“ Being?”  
“ How… indiscrete have you been to Haylen? “ Sole tilted her head a little and raised an eyebrow.  
“ Well, let’s see she’s now aware of the fact that we’re fucking on the regular. She also knows that you indeed seem to prefer being on top, that the size of the ship is surprisingly not a way of overcompensating and oh yeah… that we’re going as steady as an elitist Elder and a former Vault Dweller possibly could. And that we’re gonna have babies so you can get an heir whose first words will be ‘Ad Victoriam’. Did I miss anything?” 

Maxson didn’t seem amused in the slightest. Neither did she.  
“ Considering your choice of information I can only infer that you opted to keep our secret intact?”  
Sole rolled her eyes and nodded. “ Yes, I did. But hey, thanks for the vote of confidence.

“ You seem…”  
“ Angry? Seething? Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned? That kinda thing?”  
“ Bitter.” Sole rolled her eyes.  
“ Well, yes. It’s one thing if your boss calls you a ‘possible liability’.”  
“ Perceived liability.” She ignored him.  
“ It’s another when your boyfriend doesn’t trust you. Makes you wonder to which extent the relationship has a potential of lasting you know? You could always replace me with a more agreeable, meeker model. Oh, wait. No, you can’t. I know far too much about your past. I doubt you’d have an easy time opening up to yet another liability, excuse me, woman, to the extent that you’d keep her around. ” She looked him up and down. “Then again… you’ve been with women for other reasons than romantic interest so that might be a non-issue. Guess it kind of has a ring to it, your specialities being war and women. ”

Maxson was slightly amused by Sole’s possessiveness shining through. He walked towards Sole and placed his hand on the wall next to her head before leaning in and speaking in what sounded like a deeper tone than usual. She realised he also knew how to push her buttons. His piercing eyes stared down at her, as she internally cursed for not even being on eye-height with him.

“ You ought to take into account that we were forced to spend a lot of time together in close quarters. It can influence how strongly you feel about the person you’re with. Especially when that person is the only one you’re truly familiar with.”  
“ Watch it, Maxson. First of all; we weren’t that ‘familiar’.”  
“ I see. You presume that I would have allowed anyone to imply that I had an heir that I would refuse to have anything to do with somewhere out there in the commonwealth?”  
“ Hey, you’ve clearly gotten around… can’t say there’s no chance on that. Not to mention the fact that plenty of girls would throw themselves on you even just because they have a thing for men in power. Who knows how many little Maxsons there are running around at this point.” Sole flashed him an obviously insincere smile before she pushed one of his arms from the wall and walked away from him as she folded her arms.

“ You said first of all. What was the second insult.”  
“ Oh I didn’t forget that one. I was just getting away from… close quarters you called it?” She leaned on his desk before continuing. He stood up straight and folded his hands behind his back again. She scoffed at his posturing before continuing.  
“ So, second of all, Elder; that made it sound a lot like you only poured your heart and soul out to me because I was a familiar face.”  
“ Are you that convinced that I would talk as candidly to a complete stranger? “  
“ You’ve got a real gift for avoiding the actual point you know that?”  
He ignored her snide response and just asked his question again. “ Are you that convinced that I would talk as candidly to a complete stranger? Surely you’ve noticed how venomous some of the people in that congress were. I don’t fully trust those who are not one of my own.”  
“ Yeah, I’m the one who came home with a permanent reminder with proof as to why. So cut it out.”  
“ What are you actually asking me?”

“ Are you actually with me because I’m your Sentinel and more or less sworn to loyalty in that position? Are they right to some extent? Because you don’t seem to appreciate my morals nor do you trust me.”  
“ No. I am not. Although I do presume we would have never spend enough time with each other to …” He seemed to look for the right word to follow that up with.  
“ Bond?” She figured that was something Maxson could barely get over his lips.  
“ … develop a relationship so quickly.” Always the final word.  
“ Sure. Always with the elusive wording.”  
“ Pardon me?”  
“ Okay, I will pardon you. ” Maxson crossed his arms now. He clearly no longer felt no desire to speak. So Sole did instead.  
“ Look, although this whole high and mighty thing works fantastically as ‘the Elder’, it works on my nerves as Maxson when we’re arguing. I know you’re used to it. It shows off your training as the high and mighty Elder. But I’ve heard you curse. I know you don’t always carefully pick out your words. But the only moment you don’t think is when you’re somehow too concerned with what you’re feeling to do that. So I see it as you distantiating yourself from me when you prefer to talk to me like a suboordinate. ”  
“ Are you done yet?”

Sole threw up her hands. “ I’m not. Maybe you should learn to let go when you’re around me. What you tell me stays with me. I won’t gossip behind your back. I don’t try to undermine your rule.”  
“ You did today.”  
“ I didn’t. You should sanction me. Even if you deserved it. You see, I’m a fucking adult and not one of your flailing conquests who probably swooned over having had a night with the closest thing to a king they could find.”

“ You are one of the few people I have placed my trust in in a very long time. I do not underestimate or distrust you in any way.”  
“ Sure. In that case, why did you follow me?” Maxson shook his head.  
“ I did not follow you. I came to find you. “  
She brushed away that statement. “That’s a minor detail. You decided to follow me. Why?”  
“ I came to find you because I needed your counsel.”  
Sole nodded slowly, not believing a word of what he said. “ You didn’t need my counsel to determine whether to keep me as Sentinel or not. You’re too headstrong to make such major decisions based on another’s opinion.”  
“ I was concerned with how we left things. “ Sole rolled her eyes.  
” And that was so urgent you had to come after me?”  
“ I was concerned with how we left us. I wanted you near me! ” He slowly seemed to lose grip on his self-control.  
“ I don’t like fighting with you either Maxson. Okay, that’s not entirely true I do but not about anything serious. And this is getting serious fast.”  
Sole looked down.  
“ Besides, I don’t appreciate you lying to me. Haylen said she saw you when you brought me in. You appeared to be quite distraught. I thought that I was in the clear by the time you brought me back here?”  
“ You were.”  
“ Then why did you…” He walked up to her, hand on her face making her eyes lock on his.  
“ You know precisely why. It’s the same reason why I still can’t shake the image of you bleeding out in front of me. It’s the same reason why I would have given up anything to keep you alive. ”  
“ Well, now you’re just getting soft Maxson.” She said with a grin on her face as she pulled him closer. He got his hand underneath her shirt and hitched it up.  
“ I wouldn’t say that.”  
“ Is this by any chance going to lead to those alternative ways to fix our issues you promised me?” 

He picked her up and carried her to the bed, legs wrapped around him. He put her down before he took his shirt and boots off.  
The look Sole shot at him as he got in bed with his pants still on was dripping with annoyance. “ Ugh. Why did you do that?”  
He tried to kiss her but failed at she just dodged him and raised her eyebrows.  
“ I have no idea what you mean.”  
“ Why are you keeping those on? ”  
“ It makes things easier.” Sole started to laugh.  
“ Look, Maxson, I know you know how sex works. I know you know it damn well even. And therefore you must realise that pants just make things more difficult.”  
“ That’s correct. Hence why I opted to keep those on.” Sole closed her eyes and placed her fingers on her temples. Of course.  
“ We’re not doing anything anymore are we?”  
“ Indeed.”  
“ Why?” He gestured at her wound. 

“ You’re actually serious aren’t you? ‘C mon Maxson. I’ve never been into celibacy.”  
“ We both know that we are far too physical beings to do such a thing calmly. ”  
“ That’s a good thing. We’re just… on the same wavelength there. Although… we could try?”  
“ I am not willing to accept the consequences of risky behaviour once more. “  
“ Don’t even try to pretend that that wasn’t the night of your life. At least until I’m fully healed.”  
“ I have made my decision.”  
She pulled him down for a kiss before practically whispering “But I wanna feel you against me. Moving against me. Your hot skin on mine. So if I can’t get that…” She pushed him away and turned around. 

“ Then I’ll pass. Goodnight Maxson.” It only took a minute before she felt her hair being pushed aside, hot kisses on her neck and tugging at her shirt.


	3. Man Maketh Morals- Extra scene!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is an extra to the previous chapter (aka a sex scene, you've been warned ;) ) Doesn't have to be read to follow the rest of the story btw.

“ Then I’ll pass. Goodnight Maxson.” It only took a minute before she felt her hair being pushed aside, hot kisses on her neck and tugging at her shirt. She turned around, fully intending to antagonize him just a little bit longer before getting what she wanted. 

 

“ Changed your mind after all did you?”  
He just pulled her closer until she was pressed closely against him, and decided to make it a little bit worse by pushing her behind against him. She could feel exactly how much he wanted her, even through the pants. She felt a tingling sensation spreading out from where he hungrily kissed her neck before he murmured that if she wasn’t going to take her clothes off, he would. She turned around and just ran her hand from his collar bown down his torso until she reached his pants.  
“ See, I would, but there’s still something in my way and I’m all for evening the playing field here. Makes certain things easier to reach.”  
He got out of the bed and took off his pants as Sole looked on. “Ya know, feel free to take your time I like the view”. She was grinning by the time he got back to the bed.  
“Stop gloating Sole.” She wanted to take off her clothes as well but he didn’t even give her the time. Before she really processed what had just happened he was also tossing her clothes to the floor. He was just getting on top of her when she groaned as if she was in pain. As soon as he saw her face he got off of her, looking at the place where the bullet wound was. He immediately tried to check the wound. She took advantage of the situation by pushing him down by the shoulders before she got on top of him. He just slowly shook his head at her again while she proudly sat up straight. “Hey, if you’re not the strongest one you’ve got to play it smart.” She felt his hands making their way up her body slowly, going over her breasts before they moved down again, resting on her thighs. He looked at her as if she was some sort of goddess come to life. She loosened her hair before she leaned down on him, saying “ See, not that fragile.”

She placed her hands on his chest before she got him in her. As soon as she started moving she felt him moving with her, grabbing her by her ass and dictating the pace at first, until she grabbed his wrists and pushed them beside him. “ Forget that, you’re mine this time. Deal with it.” She could feel her body slowly caving in all the right ways though, ensuring that she ended up letting go and pressed against him regardless. Her head was right next to his and one hand was gripping his hair. It didn’t stop the rhythm they’d managed to find. He stopped for a moment, making her raise her head a little to figure out what was wrong. That created enough space for him to pull her down into a kiss. She could feel his beard but was too distracted by the way he kissed her to give a damn about it. He had started slowly, knowing it would rile her up, before he knotted a hand in her hair as he deepeded the kiss. He carefully picked her up and turned her around again, with her back on the bed. She just smiled. “Can’t help yourself can y..”

He pushed into her harder than before just once, clearly to shut her up. She just dug her nails into his back as response as he slowed down again, got more gentle, presumably remembering her wound once more. She figured that as long as he was still thinking it through to that extent, he was thinking too much. She tensed up the muscles below as a means to prompt him to just give in. That took him by surprise. He clearly clenched his teeth and tried to regain some sort of composure.  
“ Stop that.”  
“ I have no idea what you’re talking about.” She tensed up again, on purpose.  
“ Stop. It.”  
“ No seriously, what do you mean?” He stopped moving and looked her in the eyes. He seemed to wonder whether or not it was on purpose until she started to grin.  
“ Sole.. “ She did it again and he closed his eyes.  
“ Or what? What are you going to do about it Elder?” She used an overly breathy voice to elicit even more of a response from him.  
“ Damnit, fuck you Sole.” She grinned at how frustrated he was getting before whispering.  
“ Yeah well… that’s exactly what I’m hoping for.”

 

That was the last straw for him. He finally let go and barely gave her the time to gasp for air before it got knocked right out of her again. She put her hands on his back and tried to get him as close to her as physically possible. It didn’t take long for her to call out his name, seemingly making him want her even more badly. Her screaming his name seemed to be what pushed him over the edge, he came shortly after she did. 

He got off of her and crashed onto the bed, breathing heavily. She smiled as she placed her hand on his chest, his arm underneath her as his hand pulled her a little bit closer by pushing her back towards him.  
“ Hm, see that was so much better than just ‘taking it easy’.”  
“ I’m concerned about the effect you have on me.” He kissed her on the forehead.  
“ I’m quite pleased about that actually… besides, don’t tell me you’re complaining.”  
He laughed a little. She smiled at him. “ I love it when you do that.”  
“ What?”  
“ Laugh. Don’t let it get to your head, I don’t mean that your smile is a precious thing that is as beautiful as the stars on a dark night or something, it’s just rare.” Then something seemed to hit him. He gently got her off of him and had a look at her wound. She just sighed. There goes the casual pillow talk.

“ Maxson, it’s fine.” He didn’t see any fresh blood on the bandages.  
“ I presume that you are right.”  
“ See? I do know what it feels like by now. It’s a nuisance and it stings when I use the wrong muscles but it doesn’t actually hurt much anymore. ” He still seemed a little bit tense.  
“ Although I suppose it’s rather endearing that you are so very concerned.” He laid down on his back again, as she cuddled up against him.  
“ But seriously are you worried about me or about what you’d tell Jonathan.”  
She looked up at him and winked. “Because ya know even if the stitches would’ve loosened again it would have been worth it. That felt pretty damn good.”

“ Regardless of any of your preconceived notions, I consider your wellbeing one of my priorities.”  
“ You sure as hell tended to that tonight.” Sole said, smirking.


	4. Chapter XIII: Morale

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> (Sorry for the delay darlings, I think I managed to beat the writer’s block. FINALLY. Also; can anyone please, please tell me what a good time is to post stuff because it’s 4 am where I live and I think that’s not a good moment to post but I have no idea whatsoever when I should.)

Sole was getting ready to return to her duties, excited to finally get out of the Prydwen, out of that room, for once. Being trapped between four walls was getting on her nerves a little more every day. Just like one particular broody man was doing as she was preparing herself to actually be around people again. She attempted to tend to her hair a little by making a valiant attempt to brush the knots out. Maxson was looking at her, arms crossed as she put on a shirt.  
“ Maxson, I’m flattered that you abandoned that pile of papers to look at me dissaprovingly but I have made up my mind. ” 

 

“ You’re still recovering, I hereby forbid you from leaving the Prydwen.”   
She turned away from the mirror and looked at him instantly, cocking her head to the side and raising an eyebrow.   
“Really, Maxson? You can fuck me for hours on end but you think I’m still not ok enough to get back into the field? I think I’ll manage.”  
“ I forbid you from going out into the field.” Sole looked utterly annoyed.   
“ Yeah, you mentioned that before. Look, I’m fine. I can handle what we did last night, so I can handle running around and fighting in power armor.”   
“ I am not attempting to kill you. Unlike the majority of what can be found out there.” She walked over to him and decided not to get too close as it only emphasized the height difference between them. It would not serve her well to look less threatening this time.   
“ The wound has healed as much as it’s going to. The doctors gave me the go. I mean… let’s just get over it okay? Besides, I have to get back to the Minutemen at some point. They’ll get concerned. “

 

“ You will attend meetings, supervise tactical planning, but you are under no circumstances allowed out into the field yet. That’s an order, sentinel. “ Sole sighed.   
“ You do know that I don’t tend to follow every order you decide to give me right? What makes you believe I’ll follow this one?”   
“ Because you’ve publically defied me once and I presume you do not want to be the cause of chaos and discord among the ranks because they consider a coup to be impending.”   
“ Fine, Elder. Then what do you want me to do?”  
“ Get back among our men like you used to. Help them out with whatever they need help with. Whatever you used to do when you were not either on mission or advising me. ” She threw up her hands.  
“ That’s still keeping me on a leash. I don’t even get to grace you with my presence during plans for missions? My mind has never stopped being a tactical marvel you know.”   
“ The missions have been tended to for now. I have personally given them my orders, for the time being there is little reason for discussing tactics.”

Sole buried her face in her hands for a moment before she looked up at him again, still annoyed.   
“ What is it going to take for you to let me get back out there? I’m still in a better fighting condition than you are, the last time I fought is less than a month ago, the same can’t be said for you.”  
“ I did not get…”  
“ I don’t give a damn about getting shot! I’m all healed up! You know what, I know how to prove it. I’ll just fight you. If I can take you…” Maxson scoffed at her.   
“ You could not even have defeated me before your shot wound.” Sole grinned at those words.  
“ Really? “  
“ I’m positive.”   
Sole bit her lower lip before speaking to him again, in the most seductive voice she could bring to the table. “Prove it.”   
“ Sentinel, I have more urgent matters to attend to.”   
“ Spoken like a true coward.”   
“ I am fully aware of what you are trying to achieve Sentinel and it will not work.”  
“ Fight me or I’m leaving in the middle of the night, you won’t even notice it until you’ve woken up from your beauty sleep.”   
“ The guards will.”   
“ I’m more stealthy than you think I am. We both know that I would find a way to persuade them. I am, after all, their Sentinel. They admire you but they like me.”   
“ I assure you I do not have any time for such nonsense now. “  
“ Suit yourself, but know I’m sneaking out when you least expect it then.”   
“ We’ll do it tonight. When there is no one in the training room to witness it.”  
“ That’s better… but why shouldn’t no one witness it? Afraid to go down, Elder?”   
He flashed a hint of a mischievous grin before saying “We both know that I’m not. “   
Sole’s jaw dropped. “ You did not just make an innuendo. I’m impressed.”   
She walked over to him kissed him. He pulled her closer with one hand and ran his fingers through her hair.   
“ Now go, it will prove to be good for morale when you show that you are already back on your feet. It could kill whatever rumors are going around about the state you’re currently in.”

She took a step back, away from him, bowed and looked up at him again.  
“ As you wish. But don’t follow me this time or bear the consequences”   
“ I will not follow you. But if I hear you left this ship …” it had been a while since she heard that threatening tone from him. It always made her itch to do the opposite of what he said.  
“ That would be highly tempting if I didn’t know I got the honor and privilege to actually fight out my frustrations against the great Elder Maxon.” Sole winked. “One more thing. What about the sanction for going against your orders?”   
“ I am convinced a warning will suffice.”   
“ No… it won’t. It does when I’m your girlfriend. As your Sentinel who is pissed off at you, it does not suffice at all. It will take you down a notch as far as severity and general leadership goes. So come on, hit me with your best shot.” Maxson did not look amused at that specific wording at all, as some sort of gloom seemed to be set over his features. Sole tried to lighten up the mood with a “ What? Too soon?” but it didn’t seem to change anything. She wondered if he had any leftover trauma from what had happened to her. She never did consider the effect it had on him to essentially hold her as he thought she was dying. As she thought she was.   
“ Sorry. Are you… are you okay?”   
“ I am. “ 

He had settled back into his defensive Elder ways. Speaking to her as if to a random scribe who had just accidentally thrown a ball against his head. If they even had such toys around there. “ You can tell them that your punishment is being suspended from active missions until further notice.”  
“ Fair enough. Hey…” She walked over to him, placing her hand on his scarred cheek, semi-surprised he let her do so when in his typical Elder persona. “… if you want to talk about what happened back there… we can you know. “   
“ There is no need for that.” Sole’s hand dropped.   
“ Fine. If you pretend to believe that I’ll follow suit. See you tonight.” As she turned to leave he grabbed her wrist, turned her around towards him and picked her up. He grabbed the back of her head with the hand he wasn’t using to keep her up (not that that was necessary with her legs wrapped around him) and pushed her into a ridiculously intense kiss. When they stopped he put her down again. She just stood there, dumstruck. “ I’m gonna… go.” She walked the wrong way for a second before turning around towards the door. She regained her ability to think straight by the time she reached it and said “ If I win the fight, you tell me what that was about.”. He didn’t reply. 

 

Sole walked out the door, past the guards. As she did, she heard Maxson finally dismissing them. She could feel his eyes burning on her back though. She made a point of not looking behind her, knowing it would look suspicious if she did. She did know that her lips had to look fiery red considering how hard he had kissed her. She headed straight to the place she was used to, the room where she used to sleep when visiting the Prydwen, the one she shared with Haylen. As there was no sign of her she decided to go straight to a man who was likely to know, in the process doing as Maxson asked of her.   
“ Sentinel! I’m surprised to see you back on your feet so soon.” Sole smiled as she shook Captain Kells’ hand.   
“I’m hard to kill and a fast healer. Captain Kells, as you can see I’m returning to duty. Can you per chance give me an update as to where scribe Haylen is currently at?”   
“ It’s good to have you back. However I must ask why you chose to ask me this question as you have been given quarters in the vincinity the Elder’s?”   
“ M… Elder Maxson currently does not have the time to brief me on where the scribes are, as you are responsible for them you seemed like an excellent person to ask.” He nodded.  
“ Scribe Haylen and Knight Rhys are currently clearing out a feral ghoul-infested house in the vincinity of the Prydwin. They are expected to return within the next few days. Do you require assistance? I could assign another scribe to join you? Any scribe can certainly learn quite a lot from seeing you work.” Sole shook her head.   
“ No, due to a case of insubordination I have been suspended from field missions for a couple of days by Elder Maxson. I do not wish to get into detail. It just stood out to me that she wasn’t around anymore. You’re surely aware that during the time that I was still lower in rank we befriended each other, hence why I wondered where she was.”  
“ I see. Anything else? “  
“ No, thank you for the information. If you need me you apparently know where to find me already.” Sole decided to leave and figured there were plenty people to go to. After all, she was generally well-liked around the Prydwen. She decided to stop at Quinlan’s quarters. As she entered, Emmet abandoned the newspaper he was playing with in favour of her legs.   
“ Good morning to you too Emmet. Proctor Quinlan. “ She petted the cat and walked over to his owner. “ It’s good to see you back without any bumps or scrapes.”   
“ Well, I’ve got one of those but nothing too serious. I was wondering to which extent the technical documents I provided you with have proven their use up to now.”   
“ They most certainly have. They have given quite some important insight in a more effective use of fuel. I do suggest you keep your eyes open if you get back out there in the Commonwealth. Although I presume such a thing is not imminent? “  
“ Not yet, but I surely will when the time comes.” As she walked outside she decided to just go to Ingram’s ‘lovely little greasepit’ next.

 

“ Hey Ingram, you told me to come to you when a robot’s gone haywire. How ‘bout some nutjobs tryin’ to off me?”  
“ Seen my fair share of those too. I suppose it’s true that you got shot at then? It’s nice to see you back in one piece.”   
“ Yeah, it is. “ Sole gestured at the piece of power armor Ingram was working on. “Can you use some help with that by any chance? I’m not supposed to go on missions quite yet, Elder’s orders. “  
“ Sure, something’s malfunctioning with the right leg of that T-60 power armor. You could check it out. I suppose you haven’t forgotten your way to the workbenches yet?”   
“ Nope. I’ll fix it.” As soon as she wanted to test the power armor a young boy came rushing in and stopped in their tracks when he found Sole, immediately sparking some panic in Sole.  
“ What happened?” Ingram’s eyes were on the messenger as well. While the scribe was gasping for air he just brought out that Maxson had requested her presence.   
“ Okay, breathe kid. Calm down. Did he tell me why he requested my presence? Did you rush for a reason? “ The kid shook his head. “ I just wanted to try my best to get you as fast as possible.” Sole smiled at him and bent through her knees a little, trying to get on eye-height with the child.  
“ You did a very good job. Sit down for a while, catch your breath. Let’s get you a drink. “ Sole walked alongside him to the bar. The kid looked concerned.   
“ What’s wrong scribe?”   
“ Well… the Elder needed you. I… I think you should probably go to him.”   
“ Yeah, as soon as you got a drink. What’s your name?”   
“ Squire Wren” Sole nodded. “ I’ll let Maxson know you really put in a lot of effort to find me, okay?”  
The kid put down his glass again and looked at her wide-eyed and happy. “Really?”   
“ Yeah, really.” Sole smiled at the kid, wondering if Maxson had ever been like that. Innocent, just looking up to this king-like person. “ Finish that glass, okay?” She walked away, towards Maxson’s office. Trying to think of why he would have requested her presence in the first place.

There were no guards at the door as she knocked on the door and he opened it, closing it behind her.

“ Well, what was so urgent that you sent Squire Wren after me, running? The poor kid was panting by the time he got to me. ”

“ I can assure you I did not instruct him to do so. I merely ordered him to find you and give you the message to get to my office. ” 

“ He wanted to make your proud, Maxson. Seemed to look up to you. Do me a favor and go tell him he did a good job sometime?” 

He threw some sort of boxing gloves her way. “ It’s time to get to that ‘fight’ which you suggested.”


	5. Chapter XIV - Pack a punch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Extra long chapter due to the long wait. Enjoy! (Sex scenes have a clear ‘warning’ before and after in bold so you can skip em if you want.

“ Could you explain to me why It is that you only brought one pair of these?”  
“ Because I will not fight back.” Sole felt her patience slipping.  
“ What’s the use of this if we’re not even truly going to test my physical limits, Maxson?”  
“ If you do fare as well as you are convinced you will, we will resort to a second pair but for now I do not deem such measures necessary.”  
“ Fine… but I expect you to get that second ‘just in case’ pair now. No empty promises to me Elder. ” Maxson pulled another pair of boxing gloves from under his desk, as well as some protective gear, while maintaining a deadpan expression. It stood out to Sole that his black boxing gloves were in a remarkably good state, probably indicating he had claimed a pristine pair ages ago. She had to admit to herself that she was rather impressed by him anticipating her minor outburst, however she’d never admit it to him. No need to boost that ego anymore with people saluting him on the regular. She cleared her throat “Not bad, Elder.” before turning away from him and walking into the ‘bedroom’. She wanted to put something on that would pose less of a hindrance than her ripped, dirty jeans. She could use every edge over Maxson she could get. Twice as broad and a whole lot taller certainly did not make for a fair fight but she had taken on worse. She wanted to head into her own brand new quarters cojoining the bedroom but found some more comfortable clothing ready on their bed. It was not hers but they looked suitable enough and fitted. She put her hair up and leaned against the doorpost, trying to look as cocky as she possibly could. Initimation seemed not the thing to really throw Maxson off of his game but she could always try. 

“ Ready to get your ass kicked?” Sole winked at him while Maxson rolled his eyes at her. He grabbed a duffel bag with the material he had previously shown her in it and opened the door.   
“ Are you?”

The few people who were still out did not seem to pay any real attention to them, presumably because they were cloaked by the shadows. At night the Prydwin generally had a lot of those. Sole quite enjoyed the feeling of never being alone yet the chance to not be noticed when you don’t want to be. Besides, the Elder and his sentinel out sparring probably would have created somewhat of a buzz otherwise so Sole quicky figured that it was for the best to only do this kind of thing by night.

“ Do you do this often?”  
“ Regularly. Are you getting concerned Sentinel?”  
“ Not at all I’m just wondering what you do to kill the time when other people are out fighting your battles. ”  
“ Our battles. And that’s an executive decision. ”  
“ You’re Elder. You can do whatever you damn well please. So don’t even try to sell me that kind of nonsense. ”  
“ We both know any army with me at the head of it would be the number one target to any of our enemies, putting each soldier present at risk. Not to mention that my death would cause a war over who would be the next leader. You’ve seen the options… I’d rather not take the risk.”  
“ Tsk… How did you ever even learn to be part of the brotherhood if you never got out to fight?”  
“ I have already told you that I did. I was only ever sent out with the best and kept a low profile.”  
He quickly scanned the room for anyone left in it before he locked the door behind them.  
“ A little surprised that there are no guards with us.”  
“ Guards mean rumors. ” She had to agree with him there but didn’t respond. 

She put on the boxing gloves and tried not to get overly annoyed at him not following suit. They didn’t look as good as they once most likely used to, but they would do the trick.   
“ You will be trying to land a hit on my upper body. Abdomen or chest. ”  
“ You’re also not going to wear the protective gear?”  
“ Why would I?” Sole gave him a snide smile. She didn’t quite know how yet but she was going to get at least one proper hit in. She’d rather step out battered and bruised than giving him the chance to gloat over her defeat, not that he would let that happen with his ridiculous measures. She stood across him and waited for a sign to start this fight. A nod started off what ended up being a war of attrition. She would’ve met his criteria easily were it not for his remarkably good reflexes, blocking most of her punches. Eventually he grabbed her, twisted her arm and had her wrist behind her back. She struggled to get the upper hand again but failed desperately. 

“Focus. You’re all over the place.” He let go of her wrist and she placed herself opposite him again, seething. All his comment seemed to have done was send another shot of adrenaline through her veins.   
“ Enemies tend to fight back Maxson, you only have to focus on blocking. That makes things a whole lot easier for you than the average opponent.”  
“ Until you learn how to handle your emotions you cannot win this regardless. And I won’t let you.” He let go of her. She didn’t even look back at him when she threw off the gloves and went to get a drink while trying to figure out how he would respond to her moves. She’d need some sort of surprise element… follow-up moves which he did not see coming as easily. He never did specify that she could only try to attempt him once at the same time. She closed the tap and got the water off of her mouth with the back of her hand. 

She stood in front of him, putting on her gloves once more, and looked him right in the eyes. “ Ready?” She nodded.   
After starting off with a couple of easily blocked off moves she managed to surprise him with a hard low jab where she estimated one of his kidneys was located, she twisted around him before getting him floored with a well-placed kick to the back of his knees and a small shove when recoiled from the first blow. 

“ See, the way I see it you just need to focus.” Sole was grinning down at him.  
“ You’re a faster learner than I expected.” He looked rather pleased with her progress.   
“ Shame on you for not anticipating that I would do that. Now keep your promise, actually fight me. This is frustrating and just no fun. I can take a hit.” She nodded at the bag in the corner while he got back on his feet. He walked over to it, took out the black boxing gloves and threw the bag at her feet.  
“ I’m not putting that on. I won’t have such a restricting mess on me there either. We both know I’m pretty agile, wouldn’t wanna ruin that would we?” She blew him a kiss and winked. He shook his head but with a smile on his face.   
“ I presumed you would say that.”   
“ You think of my agility that often do you?”  
“ I mean the gear. At least put the head protection on.” She shrugged and did as he said. “ Still think you’re gonna need this more than me. I fight dirty from time to time. You’re too freakin’ careful.”   
“ Are you certain you want to test your limits to such a great extent?”   
“ Hell yeah. I don’t want you to hold back. Kind of like in other circumstances.“  
He jabbed at her face, seemingly intentionally missing it by an inch.   
“ You talk too much.” She smirked at him.  
“ Ready to get your ass kicked, Elder?” He just smiled at her.   
“ I surely will enjoy watching you try.” 

“ No holding back?” He shook his head, never breaking eye contact with her. However much she tried to distract him with innuendoes, it was that kind of look that got her mind wandering… so she threw the first punch.   
She blocked his first attempt at a punch to her stomach easily, surprised he dared to even go for that general area considering the vincinity to her wound. She ducked his second attempt at a punch and immediately went for his shoulder, resulting in him grabbing her by that same arm and getting her in a chokehold. He kissed her temple as she tried to struggle from his grip. She only managed to escape when she elbowed him against the chest. “Elbow’s the strongest point in the body, Maxson. I’d expect you to know that.” He was clearly getting about as much fun out of it as her, smiling at her inventiveness.   
She lunged at him again with a low punch against his side, he successfully hit her in abdomen in return.   
“ You would be writhing on the floor if that had been full force.” She got up again and placed her hands in the right position once more. 

She shrugged “ Doubtful. It’s practically healed. Besides, my enemies don’t know about my wound.”  
She gestured at him to try again as he smiled and tried two jabs left and one uppercut to her face, she dodged and tried a cross, effectively hitting him against the jaw instead. Next time he tried to hit back, she grabbed him by the arm and tried to work him against the ground but he just grabbed her body and had her against it in no time instead, grabbing her by the wrist. “Not bad.”   
She was panting whereas he still seemed to have his breathing more or less under control still, getting on her nerves more or less immediately. She involuntarily looked at his lips, but couldn’t manage to sit up so kissing him was not even possible. He got off of her and got up. She rubbed her wrists.   
“ Maxson… You’re such a tease.” He reached out to help her get up and she tried to pull him down with it but failed drastically. Considering their difference in weight, not surprising of course. But she still couldn’t stop herself from trying. He looked somewhat impressed at her efforts nevertheless.

“ You showed improved fighting prowess.” He said, while taking off his boxing gloves.  
“ Yeah well, as you have just experienced, I need agility and response speed. I don’t fight well against an immobile enemy but then again, I don’t tend to fight against something that does not fight back.”  
“ What state is the wound currently in?” She lifted her shirt and showed it to him, while looking down at it herself. “It looks and feels fine.”  
“ Good.”   
“ This, by the way, totally shows that I’m ready to get back out there. “ He shook his head slowly. “ I presume it does.. although I do prefer to have you near. As my Sentinel, you do have certain duties.”  
“ I managed to combine those with my other duties easily before. You literally have no reason to stop me anymore and that’s all that is currently bothering you. So… I suggest that you find some way to accept it cause I’m hardly the kind of person you can tame. “  
“ I have no intention to do even attempt doing so.”   
“ Good. How’s your jaw doing?”   
“ It is doing fine. I am going to take a shower, I suggest you do the same.”  
“ Well I’d be happy to join you, yeah.”   
“ This is not an invitation to join me, Sentinel. Unlike this place I cannot lock the showers, not to mention that there is always a chance of people returning from missions.”   
“ That’s unfortunate. “ Sole let her hair loose and smiled at him.   
“ Shower at the women’s showers and return to my office, or to yours. Wait for a few minutes before you take your leave, I’d rather not risk any Knights returning from mission or Squire’s up past their curfew seeing us.“ He left without another word, rubbing his jaw a little. That was as much of a trophy as she needed. She started timing five minutes before getting up herself and walking up to the showers as well.

Maxson didn’t make much of the sound of someone else entering the showers, not even in the middle of the night, but he sure as hell didn’t expect to feel a hand on his back, sliding up. He turned around and grabbed the wrist of whoever was behind him while hissing “What do you think…” before getting the water out of his eyes and looking straight into Sole’s. “ You’re a bit jumpy , Elder. Bad conscience?” She walked closer to him and reached up to his chest while he tried very hard to remain focused on getting her out of there again.  
“ Sole, if anyone finds you here…”  
“ Hey, I like livin’ on the edge a little. Besides, judging by the way your body is reacting to me you’re not exactly minding this as much as you’re letting on to.”   
She closed her eyes and kissed him right underneath his chest before trailing kisses upwards with her eyes closed so the water wouldn’t completely blur her eyesight. He grabbed her by the shoulders and pushed her backwards a little. “ Ah, c’mon. Nobody’s coming in anymore Elder. “  
“ I do believe my orders were clear.”

“ Not until I got what we both obviously want.”

“ Leave, Sentinel.”  
“ Make me.”   
Sole looked at him disappointed when he left and decided to simply shower herself then. She was here now and it was too much effort to get dried off and put her clothes back on to move to another shower. The sound of metal scraping over metal got her to the dressing rooms instantly though. Maxson had moved a heavy bench in front of the door and just had a ravenous look in his eyes. He walked straight past her and put on the other showers there.   
“ That seems like a waste.”   
“ This place is not sound-proof.”

 

(- adult -)  
At that he walked towards her, reaching her in no time, and picked her up effortlessly. Even though he seemingly didn’t have to put much effort into holding her, she wrapped her legs around his waist pushing her against his body. “ As long as I can get you closer to me I’m going to. ” He got back to the shower and made sure that she had some of warm water streaming down on her. She scoffed at him. “ Please tell me this all wasn’t just a ruse to make sure I don’t get cold? Cause there are better ways to achieve your goal if you are…” She made an attempt to use her hand to guide him inside of her but got knocked against a wall instead. He took the element of surprise to get into her, rewarded by Sole’s moans. From the position they were in it was easy for him to kiss her breasts and neck. He could tell that she was still cold by the goosebumps on her skin and tried to get his body as close to hers as possible. He hated that he couldn’t move his hands without dropping her. She took the chance to put her hands wherever she saw damn well fit however, digging her nails into his back as an attempt to get him riled up more. She held on to him, fingers in his hair which was not as carefully slicked back anymore but a complete mess. She felt his tongue moving down on her neck and pushed his head closer to her as the warmth of the kiss seemed so much more intense because of cold. She couldn’t tell if the shivers down her spine had anything to do with the cold anymore at this point as their bodies moved too well together. When they came he nearly dropped her, cursing because of it.   
She tried not to laugh as she said “ Good thing I’ve got some strength in my legs… those kinds of things would get people a little bit suspicious, wouldn’t it?”   
“ My knees gave out.”  
“ Good, means you were focusing on the right thing. So… that was fun but *ahum* a little unpractical when someone’s knees give out. “ She was still grinning ear to ear, highly amused by the whole thing.

“ I agree that there are more convenient means to have intercourse” Sole scoffed at that choice of words. “ Better known as sex when between two consenting human adults maxson. That’s the kind of language you can use not to hurt someone’s overly sentive feelings but the woman you’re doing it with? Not quite as necessary.”  
(-adult-)

When they left, Sole pulled a suspicious note off of the door and crumpled it.

“ What did that say Sentinel?”  
“ Showers currently out of order due to severe leaking. Molerats gnawing at the pipes expected. Keep out.” She grinned and bowed before him as she tried to get her hair a little bit dryer with the towel in her hand. He reached for her free hand and squeezed it gently.  
“ Was that a warning one? Cause then you’re a bit late. Besides you weren’t complaining before.”  
“ It was not. You never seize to amaze me Sentinel.”  
“ You’re not worried someone will see us holding hands then? “  
” That most certainly looks less conspicuous and is solved faster than being caught in the shower together. “

They looked at each other and immediately decided to use the separate doors to get into their respective offices. It gave Sole a chance to check out hers… so far the bed had been far more alluring for different reasons. She wondered if there was suh a tjing as an interior designer or whether Maxson had handpicked the sleek modern design in the entirety of the room Of coursr most of the furniture had been made of steel but some of it had been painted black or white. She even found a Speech bobblehead on her desk as some sort of decoration.

“ Do you like it? “ Sole immediately turned around to see Maxson leaning against the doorpost. “ Like is a bit of an understatement. Bobbleheads are rare. “  
“ I am aware of that. I have never taken a liking to them but this particular one seemed to suit you rather well…”  
“ Hm I suppose that I’ll take that as a compliment rather than a polite way to tell me I never shut up.” She found the majority of her clothing in a drawer from a large metal dresser. Maxson gestured at a a corner of the room, where Sole saw a small box.  
“ When clearing out your belongings to move them here a metal box was found with a picture and some holotapes. I can ensure you we have respected your privacy; Nobody has received clearance to as much as touch them. Due to the possible emotional value to you and I did not want to be so presumptuous as to go through them myself either.” He handed over the key and wanted to leave, allowing her some time alone. He stopped when he felt her hand on his wrist. “Please stay?” Maxson nodded and took place next to her as she sat down on the floor next to the box, opening the lid carefully.

“ What are those holotapes?”   
“ Memories. Some sad, some good.” Sole explained of each one what they were. Starting with the hardest one… the tape of Nate talking to her and Shaun making nonsensical baby noises, the one Codsworth had recovered. She then looked over at some others, one in which she was talking to herself to keep holding on, one with a song, one with drunk minutemen singing praise of her, one of a speech by Hancock (Maxson disliked that) and one with Danse proudly saying ‘Ad Victoriam’ and some Brotherhood members following suit.

She took out the picture next, a family picture. Nate with a big smile on his face while she was proudly looking down at Shaun. 

“ Sometimes I wonder why I even hold onto these. Maybe I would be better off if I let the memory fade. All I see now when I see a family picture is my husband getting shot after our baby was pryed from his hands. A baby that turned into a cruel, dangerous leader at the head of the institution that took him from us. “ She looked up at him. “ Did I mention what Shaun told me? He never intended to meet me specifically… he was curious whether I would survive the Commonwealth, expected me not to make it through. His father… he called him collateral damage. That is the moment I realized that he was only my son my blood, nothing else anymore. He was a child of the Institute from the moment we were robbed of the chance to raise him.” She breathed out, trying to hold back some tears as Maxson pulled her closer to him.

“ History and family is worth remembering. You clearly loved them.”  
“ Still do. “ Maxson could not shake the feeling of imposing on something that had little to do with him at those words. They made sense, of course, but it also made him feel particularly uncomfortable. She looked like she just woke up from some daydream after staring at the picture for a little bit longer. She noticed that he felt a little bit tense, unmoving and that he had spoken remarkably little.

He got up and reached out his hand to her.   
“ I need to show you something.”   
She walked back outside with him, he seemed to care very little about who might see them all of a sudden, as he did not let go of her hand. He guided her down some stairs, to a place she had not seen in the Prydwin before. He stopped in front of a wall with words engraved in it. She couldn’t see what they spelled out until he lit the lantern at the bottom of it.  
“ This is a memorial wall. The names of the brothers and sisters who put down their lives to protect humanity.” Sole ran her fingers over some of the names and noticed his eyes were on Sarah Lyon’s name.  
“ I’m sorry, Maxson. I didn’t want to drag you down.”  
“ It is my duty to stay by your side, especially as you need mental support.”  
“ You don’t have to, I would rather have you leaving if you don’t want to be here actually. If all of this is too soon, too much… I get that.” Maxson was silent for a moment before he looked her in the eyes, cradled her in his arms and told her “I am where I need to be.”


	6. New blood and old scars

Sole glanced over at Maxson in their shared bed. The night before had been particularly intense, emotions running high with both of them battling past demons. Sole had known that Maxson was much more than the authoritarian figure at the front of the Prydwin for a while now but moments of vulnerability remained rare. She ran her fingers through his hair, before sitting up straight and burying her face in her hands. She had barely managed to sleep, finding that the pictures of her family brought along some nasty nightmares… at least that’s what she wished they were. In reality they were more than that, painful reminders of what had happened and of what the Institute had done… and what she had done. She sometimes wondered if Nate would’ve approved of her choices, but each time she came to the conclusion it didn’t matter. She did what she had to do. Regrets and thoughts of what could have been were useless. She looked at Maxson more closely, to find out he had a frown set on his face. “ Maxson?” He started twisting and turning. When trying to wake him gently didn’t work she grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him. “Wake up! Maxson!”

He shot awake, heaving and with a look of terror set on his face.   
Sole tilted her head. “Looks like I’m not the only one haunted by nightmares.” 

Maxson looked at her with pain in his eyes. “What did you dream of?” Maxson didn’t reply and just pulled her close to him. She let him, putting her head on his chest. “You dreamt of the assassination attempt. Did you lose me?”  
“ I refuse to say that out loud.” Sole smiled, revelling in the warmth of his body and clinging to him as well.  
“ For a leader you’re a little bit superstitious Maxson. But all right… I can guess.” His breathing was still fast, his heart beating like a hammer. “Calm down. You didn’t lose me, I’m right here.” He held her a little bit tighter.   
“You mentioned me not being the only one haunted by nightmares? Did you have one as well?” Sole nodded. “Yeah, I did. Except Nate is actually dead.”  
Maxson kissed the top of her head. “ My apologies for asking.”   
Sole shook her head to whichever extent she could considered how closely she was pressed against him.  
“ No, makes sense that you did.” Sole had been planning to tell him she was going to leave the Prydwin, get to the Minutemen for a couple of days, but decided against it. He’d never be okay with letting her leave when he had only just had such a dream.

 

“I’m gonna head back over to Ingram’s, see if she can use some help.”   
“ I need to discuss some tactical planning with you first.”   
Sole smiled. “Finally something interesting to do.”

“ Are you implying that I am not interesting, Sentinel?” She looked up at him. “ Not at all. But I’m not just the play house type. There’s more to life than being your girl.“   
“I am aware of your need for independence.” She moved up a bit so she could kiss him. “Good. That being said…” she deepened the kisses, feeling his hand knotting into her hair and pulling her closer. She took off her top and leaned down to kiss him again, hand on his chest, when there was knocking at the door. Sole just let herself drop on top of him. “Not again. People here have the worst timing.”  
“ You might want to get off of me, this could be urgent.”  
“ Fine.” Sole moaned, highly annoyed. She rolled over to her usual place in the bed again, and pulled the sheets up while he got dressed and walked out of the door, closing it behind him. She couldn’t hear a single thing through the closed door and decided to just put her top back on and get ready to get up. It didn’t take long before Maxson returned.   
“ The scribes who were out on mission have returned to base. You have apparently requested updates on their progress? They did not find you in your office. The scribe decided to inform me in case you were getting briefed in mine. Haylen and Rhys have some minor injuries but that’s standard. ”   
Sole snickered. “Thanks to that guy’s interference I was not ‘getting briefed’ by you, unfortunately.”   
Sole noticed a glimpse of a smile before he told her the meeting would take place in about an hour, with the other high-ranking members of the Brotherhood present as well.   
“ Are we still ‘fighting’?”   
“ Not in front of my consultants.”   
Sole nodded. “Okay. But you do realise that if you want news to spread on us no longer getting along that those are the ones we need to convince?”   
“ You might be right. “  
“ That’s a given. Anyway, I suggest I get out of here and show my face around the Prydwin. Send a messenger if you need me, I’m headed to Haylen, check out those minor injuries. ” She walked up to Maxson, standing on tiptoes to kiss him. “ For when we see each other again, remember there’s a fine line between love and hate.” She winked at him and shut the door behind her, leaving him trying very hard to clear his mind.

“ Auch, that doesn’t look good.” Sole didn’t take long to find Haylen. There was a stitched up gash in the scribe’s leg. It didn’t look infected but it was long and seemed rather deep.   
“ She’s fine.” Sole hadn’t noticed Rhys at the side of the room with his arms folded, looking at her with the usual level of contempt.   
“ Rhys. We’re sure seeing more of one another than we both would’ve liked huh?”   
“ Tell me about it.” He grunted before Haylen interfered.   
“ He had my back out there. Bastards would’ve gotten more than my leg if it weren’t for him.” Sole pulled up a chair next to her bed. “ What happened exactly?”   
Rhys answered.“ Ferals managed to damage the building, brought down part of the infrastructure. She was hit by the debris, broke her power armor.”   
“ I was stuck there, while blasted his way through mainly on his own. He got me out. If he hadn’t been there…” Sole looked at Rhys. “Well… thanks for being there then.” He remained stoic as ever.   
“ I’m headed back to write our report on the mission, Haylen.” She nodded at the Knight before he left.  
“ I don’t know what you see in him.” Haylen’s head jerked in Sole’s direction again, no longer staring at Rhys’ back as he left.  
“ What?” Sole shrugged. “Remember I asked you as an Initiate whether there was something between you two? You admitted then already that you once asked and he did not have ‘time for anything else but the Brotherhood’? Ever bothered asking him again? ” Haylen looked a little uncomfortable. “I decided to let it go.”  
“ Your call… but he is around you remarkably often for someone who is not interested.”  
“ He was my promotor when I joined and I’ve been around here for a while. Makes sense that he wants to catch up now he is here. I know he’s given you a hard time but he’s not always like that.” Sole was guessing that whatever was going on between them was more than Haylen was letting on to. 

“ Besides, speaking of spending a suspicious amount of time with people, what’s up between you and Elder Maxson?”   
“Hm?” Sole tried to look completely disinterested.  
“ There is some gossip since you having been given an office adjacent to his. “  
“ I presumed as much. “  
“ Nothing there?”   
“ No more than between you and Rhys. He still works on my nerves and he only uses that door to get me out of bed at ungodly hours to brief me.” Ah, inside jokes are more fun with two but they sure as hell did the trick when she was alone as well. “ Honestly, having sex with him would be a whole lot more entertaining.”   
“ So you’ve thought about it?”   
“ What kind of question is that, obviously I have. We fake dated. What’s your excuse for thinking about it with Rhys?” Sole grinned. Haylen ought to know that if there was one thing she could not do it was making Sole spill her guts unless she was ready and willing to. That’s just not the way it worked. Sole had spent a month around Piper Wright after all. She picked up some other tricks from her along the way… like figuring out when someone was only half telling the truth, or covering for someone.  
Sole leaned forward, hushed voice. “ Your version, off the record, what went wrong on the mission?”   
“I asked for a gun before we went in and I shot a feral straight into a supporting beam, not thinking it through. Everything caved in around us. Debris hit my leg, I was protected by the power armor but the metal got dented and something on the inside got loose, lodging a piece of metal into my leg. Nothing too bad as it turns out but I couldn’t walk without lodging the metal deeper in. Rhys covered for me.”  
“ Didn’t figure Rhys to be the type to embellish a story to mask someone’s bad calls.”  
“ He’s more loyal than you think.”  
“ How long will it take before you recover?”   
“ Won’t take long at all. I got lucky, just a flesh wound. It looks a lot worse than it is, I will be walking again soon enough, the trick was to pry the metal out of the wound and get the stitches. Got a shot against tetanus as well. How are you doing?“  
“ Itching to get back out there one of these days.”   
“ Didn’t Maxson suspend you and decided to put you on Prydwin arrest for disobeying him before?” Sole laughed. “Wow, word really does travel fast.” Haylen smiled apologetically.  
“ I am indeed ‘to stay within the confines of the Prydwin until further notice’. But I have a meeting coming up today so I presume he has semi-forgiven me. Either that or he just can’t miss me.” Sole winked.

Rhys walked in, next to a man in a long white labcoat holding records. The former made a detour as soon as he saw Sole was still there. The man (most likely a doctor) leaving the man to look at Sole. He walked straight ahead, in her direction. “ Was… was that because of you?” He looked someone confused.  
“ The detour? Presumably. We’re not exactly close Rhys and I. “   
“ I wonder why, you’re probably one of the most attractive women I’ve met aboard this ship. “ Sole arched her eyebrows, but he kept talking. “ I don’t think we have met, may I ask who you are?”  
Haylen shot him a warning look and answered in her stead. “ She’s the Sentinel.” His eyes widened.   
He reached out his hand from underneath the results and shook hers. “ Initiate Coldran. My apologies I did not mean to disrespect your authority.”   
Sole just smiled at him. “Stop groveling, as you will probably find out soon, considering I appear to be the favorite subject of a lot of gossip around here, I often don’t do conventions as far as authority go.But… don’t believe everything you here. I haven’t seen you before… how did join our ranks”   
“ I’m a medic. The Brotherhood cleared out a Deathclaw Den beside my home a while ago, I decided to dedicate myself to their cause. It’s the least I could do in return. I’m currently an assistant to …”   
Maxson walked in, arms behind his back. “Sentinel, I require your presence on the fightdeck ship for that meeting in half an hour. Scribe Haylen, how are your injuries?”  
“ I will be up and back in the field soon Elder.”   
“ Excellent. I have assigned you to Knight Rhys on his request, you will be travelling with him until further notice unless you object to this arrangement.”   
“ I don’t. Thank you Elder.” He nodded before turning his focus to the man beside Sole. “And you are Initiate Coldran I take it?” The man nodded and smiled at Maxson.“ Welcome aboard the Prydwin.”   
Sole almost burst out laughing at how sheepishly he looked compared to Maxson, standing there with his hands behind his back and head held up.   
“ Try not to scare him away Maxson. We could use some more good doctors around here. ” Coldran rewarded her with a sly smile. Maxson noticed and looked at him with clear suspicion in his eyes. He continued on to Jonathan who was standing a bit further away, asking something. Sole couldn’t see him but she knew he was watching her like a hawk regardless. Coldran walked to Haylen and scraped his throat. “Your blood values are normal, there is no sign of infection. You are hereby cleared to leave your bed.” Haylen nodded. “Thank you.”   
Sole smiled at Haylen. “ Glad you’re okay. I’ll be going then I guess. Tell Rhys to go easy on you.” Coldran walked behind her as she headed for the door, stopping her by putting a hand on her shoulder. She instinctively wanted to make a disarming move. Not a smart move to suddenly touch her from the back.   
“ Yes?”   
“ Thank you for ehm… lightening the mood there.”   
Sole smiled. “ Don’t mention it, It’s fine.”   
Sole noticed Maxson walking their way, probably had seen that Coldran followed her.   
“ Can I buy you a drink sometime to thank you?” Maxson had almost reached her.   
“ I’m not sure if that’s a good idea.” Maxson reached them as she finished her sentence. “Sentinel, a word.”  
“ Wasn’t the meeting in half an hour, Elder? ”  
“ There is something we need to discuss that before the meeting in the light of recent events.”   
“ I’m sure it’s not that urgent.”   
“ Sentinel. That is an order. Come with me.” Sole grinned, thinking ‘that’s what she said’. She looked at Coldran. “ Clearly, my services are needed. I’ll see you around. ”   
“ Hope so.” Maxson shot him a warning glance. “ … to ehm… learn more about the brotherhood ways.” 

As soon as Sole and Maxson got outside he just gazed out in front of him, obviously not pleased about something.   
“ Ok so one of us did not at all imply that something is indeed going on between us.”  
“ He seemed rather…”   
“ Competent? Nice? Handsome?” Sole smiled at him, highly amused. Clearly, Maxson didn’t share the sentiment.  
“ Forward.” He growled the word. His voice had returned to the usual pissed off low tone she used to be most familiar with,.   
“ Confident, I’d say. Well, to me anyway. You’re about as subtle as a deathclaw in porcelain shop. He’s a bit more smooth.” He grabbed her by the arm and pulled her into a storage room, slamming the door behind him. She rolled her eyes. As soon as he faced her again he started hissing at her;“ What the hell were you thinking? If you …”  
“ If I what? Flirt? May I remind you that we are not officially dating, we officially can’t stand each other. But ya know what, if you keep on your level of subtlety at this rate we might as well make out in the middle of the bar. ”  
“ Flirt with an initiate. You didn’t consider how it might undermine your authority and mine in the process.” Sole folded her arms and laughed. “So what, I ought to flirt with only Knights or something? Hm, any suggestions beyond Rhys? We never really hit it off…”  
“ Sentinel I can assure you, this is no laughing matter. ”   
She looked up at him through her eyelashes. “ Oh but it is. This has nothing to do with this being inappropriate. We both know that a lot of the people aboard this ship are in a relationship..”  
“ Do we? “  
“ The observant one from the two of us does, yes. And I know that’s against protocol but nobody gives a damn. And you’re hardly one to talk, are you?”   
She pushed herself off of the wall. “ You’re just worried because someone else is interested in me.”  
Something seemed to snap as he slammed his hand into the wall next to her, staring into her eyes.   
She all but avoided his gaze. She looked utterly unimpressed. “ Seriously? What is this? Showing just how alpha you are?”   
“ I don’t want you seeing anyone else as long as you are with me. So if you intend to…”   
“I’ve got to admit I thought you’d be confident enough not to feel this threatened. The great Elder is up in arms because someone else is hitting on his girlfriend. It’s not like I was all over him…" She sighed before she continued. “ I’ve never done anything that could make you doubt me and I am not Alice. Some trust would be appreciated. Otherwise it might not be another man that drives me away. There are plenty of other ways to do that.” Maxson took a step back.  
“ You’re right.”   
Sole smiled. “ I’m seeing a pattern here, so best just trust me immediately next time. But for what it’s worth… I’m sure you can put that adrenaline rushing through your veins to better use.”  
He held her chin between his thumb and forefinger. “ How do you suggest I do that?” She slid a hand underneath his shirt. “ Well…”  
The door opened, Maxson instinctively moved in front of his Sentinel who barely managed not to curse. The man’s eyes widened as he noticed no less than the Elder was standing there. Apologizing and closing his eyes, he left immediately.  
“ As I said, people here have the worst fucking timing. You think he noticed it was me?” Sole whispered.  
“ No. He left in too much of a haste to notice who the woman was. We should probably get out of here though. This will get gossip started.” Maxson looked at Sole before he opened the door.   
“ Yeah well I’m the prime suspect anyway. ‘Sole sighed.   
“ Are you joining me?”   
“ Go first, I’ll get out later. It’s more suspicious if we walk out of here together.”   
“ I expect you at the flightdeck soon.”   
“ I know.” Sole looked around for a couple of minutes, figuring out what was to be found in the storage room in the first place. It seemed to contain tools, primarily. Not much of interest. She took off and ran into Haylen shortly after. 

“ Already walking again? Sure that’s a good idea?” Haylen’s pants showed a bump, presumably bandages   
“ Running is not advised. I’m allowed to walk though, everything is fine. What was that, before?”  
“ What was what?”   
“ You and… Declan was it?”   
“ Coldran. Nothing’s happening there.”  
“ He seemed interested enough. If there is nothing between you and Maxson, you might as well consider him.” Sole noticed Maxson was speaking to his new Paladin a bit further on. She never warmed up to him, that position would in her mind always be Danse’s after all. She looked at Maxson. He seemed to feel her gaze set on him, as his eyes quickly moved to hers. Haylen turned around to figure out what Sole was looking at and chuckled.   
“ Or you could try going after Maxson. I normally wouldn’t say such a thing but the tension between you two can be cut by a knife. ”  
Haylen shook her head. “I’m not blind, Sole. Something is obviously going on between the two of you.”  
Sole sighed. “ Not quite. After we left he was trying to remind me that I endanger our authority when I flirt with subordinates or something like that. Didn’t use that term though.”   
“ Look, Sole, if you don’t want to be in a relationship find some other way to get him out of your system, whether you hate each other or the opposite You’re easily distracted nowadays.”  
“Haylen, let’s agree that you don’t speak of me and Maxson and I’ll stop asking questions about you and Rhys. Anyway, gotta go.” 

She caught up to Maxson as soon as she saw the new Paladin leaving, whispering.“ Ever think about just calling it quits? This whole not being able to stand each other crap? We’re terrible at it. Not to mention, it will damage our authority in the long run and in the unlikely case we do manage to pull it off, people will choose sides.”   
“ I should receive a report on the investigation shortly. When the threat has been neutralised we can bring our relationship out into the open.” Sole nodded. “ Although you do realise we must refrain from public displays of affection regardless as it undermines…?”  
“ I know. That’s unfortunate but fine. Just… not sneaking around and not denying it would be a great start.” Sole sighed. “ You know they’re already talking about us?”  
Maxson walked towards the door again. “ I presumed as much. Let them talk. “ 

 

She had to suppress a grin when walking in, thinking about what it would be like to just come out as a pure power couple rather than people at each other’s throats. The higher-ranking members of the brotherhood were waiting for them at the flightdeck ship. Cade, Jonathan, a knight-captain, the paladin who replaced Danse.

“I have gathered you here to inform you of my intention to lead a raid once more. I am convinced it will boost morale to have me accompany our men to clear out a more dangerous raider stronghold. Information has reached us that they are likely to be sitting on some tactical plans which could lengthen the life expectancy of our power cores.”   
“ With all due respect Elder, isn’t this the type of job your Sentinel usually…”  
“ My Sentinel will be beside me and I will refrain from any unnecessary risk but this is too big an operation for her to lead on her own.”  
Sole noticed that most accepted his plan without further notice, no hint of doubt on their face. They knew their ‘place’. Cade and Jonathan were a different story. Sole sighed. “I was uninformed of the Elder’s dangerous plans in this regard and suggest you allow me to overview his plans and consider whether we can create enough cover for…”  
“ No, you will not. I will go into battle beside my brothers.”   
Cade looked at him with a frown. “ Have you considered the dangers to our men when they are too concerned with looking after our leader to concentrate?”  
“ These raiders are too unfamiliar with us to go for the leader or to know our markings regardless.“ They looked at her, as if she would be able to talk him out of it. She spoke up. “ However I do consider it not the wisest call, this is his decision and I stand by it. I have the necessary experience and knowledge of how much manpower we need lead us to victory and keep him as safe as possible. We will divulge who will join us on this mission in due time. “  
“ We have come a long way, obliterating the main danger in the commonwealth, but such powerful knowledge should not be in the hands of such an excuse for humanity. Ad Victoriam.” Sole still didn’t feel the need to yell those two words after he had said them, not since Danse. She was his equal regardless of what their ranks indicated and that meant not yelling whatever he yelled but refraining him from making bad calls. As soon as everyone had left Sole stood across him with arms folded. “What the hell do you think you’re doing? Without even consulting me?”   
“ You are the one who believes I’m out of touch with my own people.” Sole shook her head. “I never said that.”   
“ I have made my decision. I certainly would appreciate to get your blessing but if that is not an option, so be it. “ Sole inhaled deeply and exhaled again.   
“ It’s a stupid decision. Cade’s got a point you know.”   
“ You didn’t object before.” Sole raised an eyebrow. “We need to be on the same team, you and I. “  
“ Aren’t we?”  
Sole clenched her jaw. “ We’re going to have to go over all of the information. I expect the files to reach me. I need to figure out a battle strategy that doesn’t put you in the direct line of fire.”

That night, Sole received all intel they had on the raider camp. She had rarely come across a raider gang this big. They had ravaged a fair share of settlements before taking over an abandoned vault, presumably killing any and every resident inside.  
They even had a trademark way of behaving… kill all leave one survivor to tell the story and warn the next settlement. That survivor wouldn’t make it either though. Each settlement had one hour to run before the raiders arrived, expertly calculated. They would raid their settlement, then hunt down the survivors, keeping the first one as the warning party for the next settlement. Sole was disgusted to read about this. True, raider gangs weren’t known for their upstanding citizenship but this beat everything. Not to mention, concerns about Preston and the Minutemen rose again. She had to get back to them after this mission, one way or another. She needed to know everyone was okay, at least that much. Attempting to keep level-headed she determined how many knights and scribes they would take and which ones. She couldn’t take everyone and leave the Prydwin mostly unguarded but the raiders would be overrun. She had to discuss each and every plan thoroughly with Maxson, too thoroughly for her liking. He usually allowed her more freedom to handle the missions her own way. They opted for an estimated four raiders for every one Brotherhood member, one knight for every scribe present. Backup briefed and ready to come in. There would be a few vertibirds at the ready in case anyone would be heavily wounded. She opted to keep some of their own surrounding the camp and only part of the group heading inside, in that group she purposefully did not include Maxson. He might be a leader but that made sure he wouldn’t be able to work well enough in a team context.

“ I see no indication they would have power core plans.”  
“ We already have those plans. Rhys and Haylen brought them in.”   
“ I see. So this is not about the Brotherhood Is it?”  
“ It is what we do.”   
“ Maxson… this mission. Did you decide to join this to impress me somehow? To remind me that you have morals deep down?”   
He looked her straight in the eyes. “ This has no relation to you. We save human civilians. It has always been the goal to preserve humanity. You may not agree with my ways to do this but we did not only start this mission when you entered our ranks.”   
“ I know that, but you rarely put the emphasis on the human aspect of things.”   
“ What are you getting at, Sentinel?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Posted on my tumblr ages ago, considered to put it on here too as I'm -finally- gonna update this work again somewhere next week or so. I'm writing again.)


	7. Chapter XVI: Alliance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Surprise! I said I wasn’t nearly done with this series yet. ;) Back after a writer’s block and during a still very busy period for me. The next chapter will be up sunday next week probably. I’m gonna make this a regular thing again. This one goes out to each of you still reading, and especially to kainschylde for the relentles support of each post on this blog and of my writing. Thank you, it means a lot.

“ You care about the Brotherhood, your brothers and sisters. Not about the random people out there. The ones you’ve got staring into the barrel of a gun from time to time.”  
“ in the rare moments such a thing ocurs, it is only to coerce them to cooperate, to ensure  _their_  safety. I can assure you that.”  
“ Maxson, you’ve got an ulterior motive. I know you.”  
Maxson put his hands on the table and grunted before looking up at the ceiling   
“ Their leader killed some of our own. “   
Sole sat up a little bit straighter “ When? Who did he kill?”  
“  You don’t know them, it happened years ago. Their leader snuck up on some of our own and managed to get away while his men took the fall. We did not manage to track him down. I was unaware of his involvement until I received a description of him. ”  
She looked at him in mild annoyance. “So you never would would have considered stopping them otherwise? Because that is what I mean by you not focussing on the human aspect of things.”  
Maxson crossed his arms and didn’t look at her. “I would have. They are a danger to the commonwealth, out of control and gaining momentum.”  
Sole sighed and ran her hand through her hair. “But you wouldn’t have insisted on joining.”  Maxson didn’t reply.   
“Damnit Maxson… so long story short; this time it’s personal?”

  
Maxson shook his head. “ It is not. I refuse to let my emotions cloud my better judgement. This serves to remove a threat from the Commonwealth instantly.”  
Sole inhaled deeply before calmly stating “Maxson, I think we need to get the Minutemen involved.”

  
“ Out of the question. They will refuse to take my orders and lack military training. Not to mention their inadequate weaponry.”   
“ They will take  _my_  orders.“ Sole crossed her arms as wel, flung one leg over the other and  leaned back in her chair. “ You keep forgetting that I am their general. They believed in me before you did.   
He stared at her until she looked up only to give her a small smile before saying “I knew you were a force to be reckoned with from the moment we met. “ She waived his statement. This was not the time for flattery.  
“ We, as in the brotherhood, will need backup. This man…  _monster_  has managed to unite several raider gangs, known for their savagery. I mean ‘c mon, pillaging, ransacking, raping presumably…  That means they live day to day and most of them most likely aren’t afraid to go out in a blaze of what they would consider glory. Not to mention that we cannot leave the Prydwin unguarded and we have no idea of their numbers. Just an estimation which we hope to be accurate. ”   
“ We have gathered enough manpower, since the Institute is gone thanks to you our numbers have picked up.”

  
Sole leaned back in the chair, rubbing her temples. “ We still need them Maxson. They will know more. They’re probably on the case already, scouted the area. I will keep the majority of them on the outside so we don’t run a risk of them outflanking us and will only take our best inside. “  
“ I said  _no_.” Maxson’s voice gave away that he was slowly losing his patience. It just fuelled Sole’s fervour.   
“ You think it’s any more responsible to have you out there? I know we don’t always see eye to eye but have you stopped to think about what your death would mean to the Brotherhood? Several high-ranking members fighting for power and pushing through their own ideas? Huh? The kind of members that nearly killed me? “  
Her words hit him, she noticed. He was considering them.

Sole sat up right, straightened her back. “ I’m going to make this easy on you. Either you accept my terms or I’m out. Out of this mission and off to  _my_  men to go there anyway. What’s it gonna be?”   
Maxson slammed his fist on the table and hissed at her; “ Don’t you  _dare_  give me ultimatums, remember your rank. And remember mine. This decision is not for you to question.”  
Sole looked utterly unimpressed and leaned forward.   
“ Remember who  _I_  am. Perhaps  _then_  you will realise I am no one’s lapdog and have loyalties beyond the Brotherhood. You have kept me here for long enough Maxson.”   
He gritted his teeth, brought his hands up to his face. Sole inhaled and exhaled loudly before continuing. “ We need troops to evacuate the settlements. Chances are they are still more trusting of the Minutemen than of the Brotherhood. “  
“ _Fine_ ,” he hissed “as long as they do not get in our way.”  
“ They won’t. “  
“ I do not appreciate this in the slightest Sentinel.”   
“ I don’t like having to give you ultimatums either, but I will if it is bound to save lives.”   
“ This merely endangers your own. If anything happens to your men out there…”  
“ Then it’s on me. I know. Not the first and not the last burden I’ll carry.”  
Maxson clenched his jaw and set his eyes on her. “ Then you will not jump in front of the gun. I will not lose you because you attempted to save one of them. “  
“ That is not your decision to make.” He clearly did not appreciate that answer in the slightest.   
“ If I do stay put, will you?” Maxson asked, more quietly than before.   
Sole shook her head. “No, they need me. This is too big of an operation not to have me there if anything unexpected happens. And I can’t set that kind of precedent.”  
Maxson crouched in front of her. “Then I won’t leave your side.”  
She placed her hand on his cheek as he closed her eyes. “ You have to. Otherwise they can take both of us down together if they get lucky.” Maxson frowned but didn’t protest. He knew she was right.   
  
“ How many days do you estimate we will need before we can attack?”  
Sole shook her head. “ Four? We have to act fast, they keep moving and pillaging… but we can’t go in there without knowing what’s going on. Plus I’ll have to brief my own men. The settlements closest to the place they’re headed for anyway. They can evacuate.“  
“ Take an escort to the Minutemen.” Sole scoffed. “No. I’ll be fine. They trust me but they don’t trust you yet. “  
“ How likely are you to be convinced by more logical arguments?”  
“ Will you let me take that doctor?” Maxson arched his eyebrow.  
“ I take it you’re not talking about Jonathan?” Sole shook her head.   
“ I want an additional medic near my people for this, just in case. Jonathan, with all due respect, doesn’t look like he’s been out in the field recently. I want him to man the Prydwin, be the head medic for those who get transported back here.”

Maxson gritted his teeth.“ Fine, but you also take a knight.”   
Sole opened her mouth to object but knew it was the best deal she’d get without someone silently tracking her instead.   
“ You notify those present here and the high-ranking officials, send the unit leaders my way and I’ll instruct them on how we’ll do this. Tomorrow morning. Then I leave, to Minutemen headquarters. I take it I can use a ventibird?”  
“ One will be at your disposal.”   
“ Excellent. “ Maxson made his way to the door until Sole lunged for his hand, grabbed it. He turned around to face her, frown set on his face. She spoke again, more softly this time “ I’ll keep you alive out there, Maxson. ”   
He squeezed her hand and pulled her close to him, until she was in his arms and his hand was holding her head closer to his chest. He wanted to promise her the same but knew he had to stick with her plan. No matter what that meant. This time, she was the de facto leader and he would have to trust on her experience in the field. He kissed the top of her head before letting go and taking off.  
  
Sole inhaled deeply. This was not going to be an easy fight in the slightest, but they’d make it through. Somehow. She bent over to look at the plans, the information they had on these rascals and the way they ran down settlements as soon as they entered. There didn’t seem to be all that much method to the madness, more like a man releasing his rabid dogs and then whistling them back to his side. She drew up how they could outflank them, how best to take them out. The scouting group, with their leader, would presumably offer less of a challenge than their vault. But that group would also be most dangerous to approach. Ready for their last stand. Contrary to their base. They’d need some heavy artillery for it. And possibly something to lure them out, get that vault door open. Sole wanted to make sure as many of her people as possible would make it out of there alive. Then there was the protection for the Brotherhood.  She headed out to Ingram’s, make sure as many power armours as possible were up and running. “ We’re gonna need a lot of heavy artillery for the next mission, Ingram. That includes power armours.“  
“ I’ve been notified we’re supposed to gather in two hours to attend a message from the Elder himself?”   
“ Yeah. Here’s the scoop: we’re going to attack a vault and it won’t be pretty. So any set of power armour we can get up and running, we’ll need.”  
“ Okay, I got it.  I will need a couple more hands here then.”  
“ I can arrange that. I’m heading off to inform the others, including the medics, of what kind of things to expect and ready themselves for. Heading off to Reagan now, we need guns.”  
Ingram scoffed. “For free? Good luck with that.”   
“ The Elder’s orders.” Ingram shrugged. “Besides, when we get back we’ll have heaps of ammunition to replace it from those damn raiders we’re going after. Elder Maxson will explain.” Ingram nodded. “Send me as many mechanics as you can find.”   
“ I will.”  
Sole headed over to Teagan next.   
“ Proctor, we’re taking the big guns, and something to obliterate walls and metal doors. We’re gonna need explosives, and someone who knows how to handle them, as well as the best guns and ammunition. Anything else you can give us would be welcome though. “   
Teagan crossed his arms and leaned back.“ And who is going to pay for all of this?”   
“ These are direct orders from Elder Maxson, you ought to direct those kinds of questions to him. But we’ll be able to compensate afterwards.”

Teagan clearly didn’t like anything that was a gamble but as soon as he heard Maxson’s name he had no choice but to settle.  
“ That better be true. I am here to make sure we don’t run out of weapons and this is not helping in the slightest.”   
“ Look, Teagan, We’re clearing out a raider den that took over a vault. Pretty sure that will include weaponry.”   
“ I am aware of that, but it is necessary to protect our base.”  
“ I know. It will be protected. “ Teagan threw up his hands in exhasparation before just rubbing his temples. “Consider it done.”  
Sole nodded. “Thank you.”

Sole notified all the Paladins in charge of a smaller group where and when to meet her to discuss the further planning. The rest was up to Maxson and them. 

Haylen was seated on a bed, with a book on her lap and a  pen in hand. Sole knocked on the wall, as the door was already open. Haylen looked up instantly.  
“ Hey, can we… talk?”   
“ Sure…” Haylen scooted over, giving Sole some place to sit.  “ This has nothing to do with the buzz in the air does it? That there’s big news coming?”   
Sole inhaled deeply and leaned against the wall. “ It… does. We’re going after a massive raider gang. They’re particularly vicious, purposefully stacking up their kill count and being more brutal than usual. This is going to be a big fight. Maxson… Maxson is joining us.” Haylen straightened up.   
“ Is that… a good or a bad thing? He hasn’t done that since…”   
“ I know. And… I’m not sure yet. Anyway, do me a favour and don’t just focus on Rhys. It’ll get both of you killed.”  
Haylen wanted to protest what Sole implied. “Haylen, don’t even try okay? I intend to take you both back here alive afterwards. And you stand the most chance when neither of you is distracted. He can take care of himself. “ “ I suppose you’re also going to be next to Maxson?”  
Sole sighed. “I won’t be. We have to attack the raiders currently on the go as well. “  
“ The most ruthless ones, presumably. Their leader is he with…”   
Sole gritted her teeth. “Yeah. Essentially. We need to keep them from getting back to their vault. They might have a radio so we will attack them at the same time. “  
Haylen nodded. “Why are you telling me this?”  Sole gritted her teeth. “Because you’re my friend. I trust you. And… I have something you need to give Maxson if I don’t make it. I need you to hang on to it, not let anyone read it. If I make it out okay, give it back to me. If I don’t, give it to him.”   
“ Why would you… “ Haylen looked puzzled until it all clicked.  Sole looked her in the eyes, closed them for a second while she breathed in and nodded.   
  
“ _Oh_.”


End file.
